So years ago when I was with different coven, we voted Imbolc off the Sabbath island. Nobody was feeling it you see. In a coven of varying levels of initiates NOBODY could come up with a ritual for it. What's more, we couldn't be arsed to give a damn about not being able to muster a connection. Everyone decided Imbolc was not important to us in the grand scheme of our Wheel of the Year. And in our defense, at the time it wasn't. Whether we were all much younger and didn't need reminding of maidenly/young man energy, or we were so full of enthusiasm and zeal we didn't feel the need to desperately search for signs of the coming Spring, or it may even have been that we were just full of ourselves. Probably it was a combination of all three. But in the end, and for lots of years, re-organizing and restructuring of the group that once was to what is, Imbolc has usually slid by with the bare minimum of observance and Wheel turning. I know for me personally over the past several years, I've noted what the calendar says, felt the energy of the season building, and found myself just reaching out with my mind to nudge the Wheel forward without much pomp and circumstance.
This year feels different. I feel (at the moment at least) excited for the coming Spring. My mind is already planning a garden My body already pining for the feel of a warm breeze with a biting finish. Fresh greens, birdies singing in the trees, and is that baby bunny peeking out at me from under the neighbor's shed? This year, I have definitely noticed that the harsh cold winds of Winter are becoming less harsh. The smell of frost and snow in the air has started to take on the musty scent of rain. And I can hardly wait to till up my earth and put plants in it.
But first, there's Imbolc. Because I can tell we're not quite there yet. Right now we're still cold and a little boggy from the snow melt and the rain. And when I say boggy, I mean it. Between the shallow depth between my top soil and bedrock, top soil that is mostly clay, and rain rain and more rain on top of snow melt my yard feels like I'm walking on a giant wet sponge. When last I took the dog out, the ground made that sucking, squelching noise and I got muddy water in my house shoes. There's also this bite in the air that is a reminder that Winter is not quite done with us yet.
I think this year, I'm going to do an Imbolc ritual. Something more than the "Hi, how are you? Move along now" -ness than is my norm. I want a ritual that that embraces the symbolism behind it all. I want to celebrate the right now where we are, and I'm thinking that right now that includes Imbolc.
Some traditional symbols for around this time are a wreath of light, milk, and/or just being outright tired of Winter's shit.Imbolc is really a celebration of the very first signs of Spring. And I mean the VERY first. Signs like the amount of daytime in our days steadily increasing. Or (as I was taught) the ewes letting down their milk in preparation of giving birth - I've never been around lambing sheep, so I don't know if that last is true. (Makes for good ritual fodder though:) The Goddess cycles throughout the year, Maiden/Mother/Crone, This year, Imbolc feels like that cycle is resetting itself.
What are you guys feeling from the environment around you at the moment? Can you feel the Crone settling in for a long nap, and the Maiden starting to stretch and wiggle?
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